NTC to instruct VoIP operators to provide rural coverage

The Philippine’s telecoms regulator the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) plans to require VoIP providers to roll out IP telephony services to specific parts of the country – to be determined by the watchdog – in return for operating licences. The proposal is similar to a scheme introduced back in the 1990s by the NTC on mobile operators, which were forced to build a certain number of fixed lines in those parts of the country deemed less economically viable, the so-called missionary areas, in exchange for concessions to operate wireless networks. The NTC hopes the move will stimulate the development of VoIP and bring down the cost of telecoms access to the average Filipino.